Beneath the Surface
by Sarah1281
Summary: Missing scene from Fruit of the Poisonous Tree. King Leopold's motivations for finding the man Regina loves aren't quite what the Genie expects. As he said, he wants *everyone* in his kingdom to be happy and Regina is definitely in his kingdom.


Beneath the Surface

Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon A Time.

King Leopold had a plan but he still had his doubts and so he sought out his daughter Snow. He always did when he was unsure or at least he had since his wife had died. Some, he knew, might find it odd that he would turn to Snow rather than his new wife Regina but that was the problem, wasn't it?

He found Snow, naturally enough, in her favorite garden. Snow did so love to be outside and surrounded by nature though her status as a princess did somewhat limit her ability to do so.

Snow was sitting peacefully under a tree and playing with the grass under her fingers. Her face lit up when she saw him and Leopold found – as he often did – that her happiness was contagious.

"Father!" Snow exclaimed, beginning to rise.

Leopold waved her off. "No need, dear."

He slowly sank to the ground so he could join her under her tree.

"That was such a wonderful party," Snow said, sighing happily. "The people really love you."

Leopold nodded. "I hope so. There is something I must speak to you about, however. I made a disconcerting discovery tonight, Snow."

Snow cocked her head, intrigued. "Oh?"

"First I have a confession I must make," Leopold admitted. He took a deep breath. "I read your stepmother's diary."

Snow gasped. "You…what? But father, that's supposed to be private!"

Leopold winced. "I know, I do. She left it out in the open, though and…I don't know. She's been so unhappy lately and I thought this might help me to understand why." Leopold's tone turned speculative. "I almost wonder if she left it out on purpose so I would know without her having to admit it to me."

Snow looked thoughtful. "She _did_ leave the party early last night and even before that she just sat in the back watching us. I tried to draw her out but she said she was fine where she was."

Leopold hesitated, trying to decide if he should continue. Ultimately, he had come this far so he may as well go on. "I know that I'm not…the _best_ husband."

"That's not true!" Snow said loyally.

"It is, though," Leopold insisted, touched by the sincerity his daughter's faith regardless. "I don't mean to be but the fact remains that I do not love Regina like I loved your mother and I don't think that I ever will."

"You can't force love," Snow told him, her eyes shining with the strength of her conviction. She had grown up surrounded by love and witnessing the love her parents had for each other so she was a big believer in true love. He hoped that nothing would ever happen to change that.

"I know." Leopold inclined his head. "Your mother was my one true love and Regina simply isn't. I don't think that I am hers, either, and that's something at least but it doesn't make it any easier for her to compete with a ghost."

Snow looked as somber as she always did when her late mother was mentioned. "You treat my stepmother very well and you care about her happiness," she finally pointed out. "What else can you do?"

"I can let her find that happiness," Leopold responded simply.

Snow's brow furrowed in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I can't dissolve our marriage; that's completely out of the question," Leopold began.

Snow nodded, as aware as anyone why they had married and the consequences of trying to end it.

"Regina's diary spoke of a man who gave her a mirror, a man who had awakened in her a hope for love," Leopold confided. "I asked the Genie to find this man for me."

Freeing the Genie was something he was particularly proud of, especially in light of the man's shocked and awed reaction, and he hoped that it wasn't too much for him to ask that the Genie did something for him as well. He would never hold his wish to free the Genie against him in that way but a part of him was worried that the Genie thought that he would or that there would be consequences for his refusal to help. He just thought that a man who had lived as long as the Genie had and seen so much would have a decent chance of tracking down Regina's mysterious love.

"To what end, father?" Snow inquired.

"The Genie asked me that as well," Leopold mused. It wasn't that he hadn't trusted the Genie but he felt that the fewer people who knew what he intended the better. His precious daughter was another matter, however. "I told him that that wasn't his concern and I believe that I gave him the impression that I intended harm to come to Regina's young man."

Snow's eyes widened. "Father?" she asked uncertainly.

"Oh, not to worry, my dear Snow," Leopold was quick to reassure her. "I would never punish someone for daring to fall in love or, at the very least, for having someone fall in love with him."

"Then what do you intend to do?" Snow asked again.

"I intend to meet with him and see if he is a man of good character," Leopold revealed. "And to see if he loves Regina."

"And if he does?" Snow pressed.

Leopold sighed. "If he does then I will let them know that they have my blessing. I only ask that they be discreet. That is why I misled the Genie, after all. I do not expect him to stay at court forever and so he will give me the name and assume that I have taken care of the man. He will know that Regina is still at court but will assume that I have dealt with her suitor."

"And if he chooses to stay?" Snow inquired, well-aware that it wasn't her father's habit to throw guests out of his court.

"As I said, I very much doubt that he will," Leopold answered. "He has been imprisoned for so long that I have no doubt that he will desire to leave and see the world at once. But should he stay or should Regina's love be prominent enough that the Genie knows that he has not been cast out then he will likely believe that I was as merciful as I could be when separating them."

"You've thought of everything," Snow said admiringly.

Leopold smiled. "I would hope so if I am going to be encouraging my queen to have a scandal."

"There aren't many people who would be okay with their wife loving someone else, even if they knew that they didn't love her themselves," Snow remarked.

"Do you think that this is the right thing to do?" Leopold wondered. "While I live she can never fully be with this man but I wouldn't want to deny her of her happiness. I want _everyone _in my kingdom to be happy and Regina is most assuredly in my kingdom."

Snow looked down. "As you know, I ruined my stepmother's chance for happiness so if you think that this will make her happy then I will support it."

Leopold's eyes softened as he put his hand on his daughter's shoulder. "That wasn't your fault."

Snow gave him a watery smile. "Thank you. I think we both know that it was, though."

That had been an accident and she had been so young at the time. Part of the problem with someone as determined to be a good person as Snow was was that it was very hard for her to forgive herself.

"Your stepmother forgave you a long time ago," Leopold reminded her gently.

"I know," Snow agreed. "And that just makes me feel worse. I really need her to be happy, father."

That admittance hardened his resolve. That had to be kept discrete, of course, to avoid a scandal that would shake the kingdom to its core but he was confident that they could pull it off. Regina deserved to be happy and so she would be.

He had lived his entire life dedicated to ensuring the happiness of his people and he had tried to instill the same values in Snow. He was _so_ proud of her.

He wasn't perfect, far from it, but with such dedication to making people happy and sharing his own happily ever after, how could it not all work out in the end?

"She will be, Snow," Leopold promised. "We all will."

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